Yellow Split Pea and Bacon Soup

This recipe for Yellow Split Pea and Bacon Soup is full of flavor and an easy alternative to traditional split pea and ham soup.

I love split pea and ham soup, but let’s face it, sometimes messing around with ham hocks is just a bit too much work for a bowl of soup.

I created this recipe which is a lot easier to prepare, but doesn’t scrimp on flavor. To add a smokey taste, I add a teaspoon of smoked paprika and instead of ham, I just chop up some thick sliced bacon or pancetta and fry it up before adding the vegetables and stock. This adds loads of flavor and requires a lot less prep time.

This soup is total hearty comfort food. It’s packed with flavor and fills you up so this soup is an all around win! It’s so good that if you do make the classic split pea soup, you might just find yourself converting to this easier recipe!

This Yellow Split Pea and Bacon Soup was also kid approved so it’s definitely a family friendly dinner!

I already look forward to making it again this fall and winter, there’s nothing like a bowl of perfectly warm, good home-style soup on a cold day.

3.67 from 9 votes

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Yellow Split Pea and Bacon Soup

This soup is full of flavor and an easy alternative to traditional split pea and ham soup.

Hi Shelley,
I never heard of yellow split peas myself until quite recently. They are different than green; they have a milder flavor. I’m not really sure how to describe the difference, but some say they are sweeter and some say nuttier (I’m not sure I agree with either). You’d have to try them yourself. If you have trouble finding them in the grocery store, try online. let me know if you try them!

I remember when my grandmother and later my mother made a Bacon and yellow spilt pea soup and the split peas used to totally fall to bits. I followed a recipe and there were bits and pieces of husk and pea. It was alright once I used a blender on it but how do I achieve that result without a blender?

We enjoy our yellow split pea soup in my Swedish family. This recipe is excellent and so much quicker using bacon, I’ll be using your recipe more often! I used thyme instead of the paprika and I also added a large diced gold potato. Thanks for sharing this!